Brain drain hits home

[Schibulsky]

7Days today:

Sunday 6 Sep, 2009

An exodus of local talent is costing Arab countries more than a billions dollars a year, according to a report.

More than 54 per cent of Arab students fail to return to the Middle East after studying abroad, leaving local economies footing a $1.57 billion bill to import skilled graduates.

According to statistics, many newly qualified doctors, scientists and engineers opt to settle in Europe, the USA or Canada rather than return home.

Looks like the slogan "If you don't like it here...leave" is not limited to expats :ok:

[C-N]

doctors, scientists and engineers opt to settle in Europe, the USA or Canada rather than return home
First time i've heard there are locals in there with the above mentioned profession, I thought they're just speeding on the streets and killing themselves on the roads and most of them in rehab.

well, maybe I'm wrong and they have really professionals in Europe and the US, but won't go home to their country due to the above.

[fractional]

This has been going on for a long time. This is basically something you can see in so many parts of the world and it is not restricted to the Middle East Gulf.
The cool headed guys/girls are not that naive. A widened Europe, Schenghen mainly, is helping these guys/girls to cross borders and look for options despite the fact that the US and Canada still remain their most likely choice of stay.
Boys are more likely to stay in Western countries because of the freedoms they learn to appreciate despite family pressures to return and get married to a local (all pre-arranged). There are also very accomplished girls, who because of their newly nurtured social relationships in Universities or because of their desire to accomplish higher professional objectives, decide to remain outside the Middle East, in many ways creating self-inflicted problems with their own families. Things get worse when they decide to marry though these girls tend to do it late or just keep a relationship going. There comes the fatal breakdown with link-home.
Back here, the majority is made of rich (and not) do-nothing boys and girls.
There are exceptions too here, but they are a minority. There are good and well-balanced guys/girls.

[Guru8904]

The news article talks of "Arabs" and not specifically GCC nationals. Majority of the students from this region who go abroad for higher education and do not return are actually from the non GCC Middle Eastern Arab states.

[fractional]

Majority of the students from this region who go abroad for higher education and do not return are actually from the non GCC Middle Eastern Arab statesI disagree. In the last 10 to 20 years, considering the political turmoil and excluding the GCC countries, only Jordanians and (some) Lebanese afford to send students abroad. And I don't think you want to compare the freedoms of the nationals in Jordan or Lebanon with those in the GCC.

[WELCO]

Let's be fair! There are many arabs in Europe and the states, and most of them carry professional degrees. Now why on earth I shouldn't trust those guys back in my home country. As far as governments are concerned, they only look for those promising minds to stay and make a living. The eye surgeon who has done the op to one of my relatives in UK was a fantastic young specialist from Egypt who has lived and worked in there for years, and I still admire his attitude and knowledge so much. May be we don't encounter lots of similar examples, but in the end there will never be any good reason for imposing the generalization of ideas!

[nyc pilot]

This is a pretty funny post. I am a native of New York City. I have also lived in the Middle East. I can assure you that every Arab I know who came to America and so called "made it" is NOT from the GCC. Most Hard Working and successful Arabs in America are the Egyptians, Palestinians, Yemenis, and some Lebanese and Jordanians. As a matter of fact I only know of and came across only one Saudi who settled here with his family. The trend here is that these people mostly came to America to persue the American Dream by working extremely hard. These people also came from very humble backgrounds(poor-middle class). There are many notable American Arabs such as Mohammad El Erian Pimco CEO(egyptian,etc) who are extremely successful among many others, its funny to see how Arabs in the Middle East want credit for the success of these type of people, they actually had the nerve to list El Erian in the 100 most influential Arabs in the Middle East even though the guy is an American and has NO ties to the Middle east. . How many Emiratis,Qataris, Saudis or Kuwaitis has anyone even heard of outside that fantasy world there? Perhaps NONE. Its so funny how their arrogance and abundance of money has blinded some of these people.

It will always be the immigrants from countries like those mentioned above along with countries like Pakistan or India who will really need to worry about BRAIN DRAIN, :D

[Guru8904]

I have all the regards for people from Jordan, Syria, Lebanon,Iraq,Egypt and Yemen who "made it" in the West through sheer hard work and perseverance. I know a Jordanian who qualified as an X ray technician, worked in a GCC hospital for 4-5 years and let for the US. The guy went to medical school and is now a PhD in Nuclear Medicine.There are numerous examples like that.
For those of us who are talking of brain drain from the GCC countries, I have worked here long enough to say that you need a BRAIN for something to DRAIN. Of course, when I say this, I am referring to 98% of the GCC natives. The remaining 2% are exceptions.

[Desert Diner]

Plenty of opportunities back in the GCC for any GCC national who has the brains or the money to get a western degree.

Why bother with an entry level position in the west where you are certain to get a managerial position back home.

Its the Egyptians/Jordanians/Syrians/Yemenis/Iranians/Iraqis that tend to stay as they don't have such an opportunity back home.

[onhmss]

Rather than go off from the GCC to parts foreign and work hard, why not just do what this cat's owner did, get a fake degree. According to a list published by a Washington State newspaper, there are quite a few buyers in the Gulf.

With thanks to Wikipedia
"Colby Nolan is a housecat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housecat) who was awarded an MBA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_of_Business_Administration) degree in 2004 by Trinity Southern University, a Dallas, Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas,_Texas)-based diploma mill (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diploma_mill), sparking a fraud (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraud) lawsuit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawsuit) by the Pennsylvania (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania) attorney general (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attorney_general)'s office.[1] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colby_Nolan#cite_note-0)
Colby Nolan belongs to a deputy attorney general. In looking to expose (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sting_operation) Trinity Southern University for fraud (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraud), some undercover agents had the then six-year-old Colby Nolan obtain a bachelor's degree in business administration for $ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._dollar)299. On the cat's application, the agents claimed that the cat had previously taken courses at a community college (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_college), worked at a fast-food restaurant, babysat, and maintained a newspaper route. Then the school informed Colby that, due to the job experience listed on his application, he was eligible for an executive MBA for $100 more. The agents then sent for Colby's transcript (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcript), which claimed that Nolan had a 3.5 grade point average (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grade_point_average).
Jerry Pappert (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jerry_Pappert&action=edit&redlink=1), Pennsylvania's attorney general, filed a lawsuit against Trinity Southern University upon learning that the cat had received the degree.[2] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colby_Nolan#cite_note-1) In the lawsuit, Pappert also told the diploma mill, which had used e-mail spam (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail_spam) to sell degrees, to provide restitution to anyone who had ordered a degree from them.
In December 2004 the Texas Attorney General obtained a temporary restraining order under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act against Trinity Southern and its owners, Craig B. and Alton S. Poe. The court also ordered the school's assets frozen.[3] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colby_Nolan#cite_note-2) In March 2005 the Poes were assessed fines (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fine_%28penalty%29) and were ordered not to market or promote fraudulent, substandard degree programs or to represent their university as being accredited or affiliated with legitimate universities.[4] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colby_Nolan#cite_note-ConsumerAffairs-3) It was reported that the Poes also were associated with the names Wesleyan International University and Prixo Southern University.[4] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colby_Nolan#cite_note-ConsumerAffairs-3) Since 2005 Trinity Southern University's website at Trinitysouthernuniversity.org - university Resources and Information.This website is for sale! (http://www.trinitysouthernuniversity.org) is offline. "

[Wiley]

The tradition in some quarters of the GCC (e.g., among those "too busy" to study) is said to be to hire an Filipino or Indian to do the MBA or whatever and sit the exam for you.

Could be an urban myth, but if it is, it's an enduring one - and one that anyone who's been in the area for any length of time finds terribly easy to believe.




...bit like the one Korean FA who was said to have done SEP for quite a few of her countrywomen until she was eventually rumbled.

[Kamelchaser]

"Doctor" Suliaman Al Fahim, esteemed (not) ex-CEO of dodgy property development company Hydra Properties, managed to aquire a doctorate from a University that doesn't even issue them.

When challenged about it, he claimed it was all a mistake..a misinterpretation by "other people" (despite having his business cards printed with said doctorate listed).

Seems you can call yourself whatever you like in this part of the world...but eventually sensible people find out.

[emratty]

A bit like Captain Ed....

[poina]

Let's not put too much emphasis on doctorates or fake ones. The so called educated got us into the current financial mess. How many Harvard MBA's were at the fed, Lehman's, GS, and all the others who flunked econ 101, RISK.

As for the Saudis living outside KSA, only knew of 2 in my 19 years in Saudia, and the number 1 reason for their eventual return was religion.

By the way, don't get the idea that the Saudis are all arrogant and rich. Most were thankful to have a job flying with Saudia and would be good sticks in any airline.